I love how they are priced just right and the packaging looks very clean with no unnecessary frills yet they are high-performance products!

(Note - I am talking about European price.)

I usually order mine from an online store that is located in France since the Retinaldehyde range of Avene only cost half of the imported U.S. price.

There is a bigger charge for oversea shipping (and I could never order their Thermal water spray which is my other favorite due to the regulations) but all together it is so worth it.

Retinaldehyde is a patented form of Vitamin A that is potent but not as harsh as Retin-A.

I find this much more effective than Retinol products that are available over the counter but not as irritating as something with prescription.

Eluage range is designed for women in 30's and has an active ingredient called H.A.F. (Fragmented Hyaluronic Acid) which is also exclusive to Avene and works as a skin-firming property.

There is another range called Estheal. It is targeted for younger crowd and does not contain H.A.F but is more affordable and as effective.

Estheal is fragrance free where Eluage is scented very mildly. You might want to consider Estheal if you don't like fragrance in your skincare regimen.

They are also effective for keeping occasional hormonal breakouts at bay.

(Retin-A was one of those lucky accidental discoveries like penicillin. It was found to be effective on wrinkles while it was being developed for acne treatment.

Avene has another range called Diacneal, and this has the same active ingredients and more suitable for oily skin types.)

I don't believe the rich cream form of Eluage is available in the U.S.

This is denser and more emollient than the cream version. I usually use this on my neck.

The concentrate is designed to be used on deeper wrinkles as a targeted treatment, so I used this on visible lines and also around my eyes.

(I have used retinol products for a long time and I am not as sensitive compared to someone who just started using them. The concentrate is not designed to be used around eyes. There is Eluage eyecream available, fyi.)

They moisturize my normal/oily combination skin very well without being greasy or sticky and my skin always looks much better next morning.

The concentrate form is quite effective and makes visible difference. It seems wrinkles on my forhead are deeper if I skip this for a couple of days. ;(

Retinaldehyde products are not recommend to be used for daytime and should be avoided during pregnancy.

It is even more important to use photostable sunscreen daily when you are using treatments with retinol and alpha hydroxy acid.

If you look for effective anti-aging products with reasonable price, I would highly recommend this range. :)

[REPLY] Thank you dear, and the same to you! :)Good job! I didn´t manage to leave the store empty-handed:( :P

I haven´t used any anti-aging products yet, but I have to say I LOVE Avenes Cold Cream for dry hands.. As I´m a hairdresser my hands get soo dry all the time. But I´m using the cold cream with cotton gloves during the night and my hands are as soft as heaven the day after:)

I was told not to start using anti-aging products till I'm 30, so I still have a couple of years (eeek). But these do look very nice! Avene is very reasonably-priced here in Europe, so I'll definitely look into it when I need this kind of products :) Thanks for sharing Lena!

loli guess you just need to find products for good cleansing, moisturizing and sun protection for now!this range is effective if you suffer from occasional breakouts, but it doesn't seem to be your case, either. :)

i was told the same thing but i think i started using anti-aging/anti-oxidant products pretty early. now of course, i need all the help i can get! ;pi am so jealous about european higher-end drugstore brands.now eluage cream is well over $40 which i still think worth it, but it is as much as some department store brand like clinique!

Thank you for writing such an informative and thorough post Lena. I've heard of retinol products but I've never tried any myself. I currently don't use any anti aging products but I think now would be a good time to start. They say you should start sometime in your mid 20's, I believe. This skincare line sounds pretty promising though. I like how the products contain Retinaldehyde since you say it is more effective but gentler on the skin. I'll have to do more research into anti-aging products :)

this whole range promotes plumping of skin surface and healthy skincell turnover and does a great job evening out skintone.i see they definitely help me to heal quckly after breakouts.hope this helps! :)

thanks for reading a such long post, Rinny :Dyou still look like a baby but it's not too bad to start early and prevent!i think it is importatn to first find out what works for you.for example, vitamin c doesn't work very well for me although there are tons of people swear by it.vitamin a products could be harsh as well, but this range is quite gentle. i wouldn't be too scared to try them. :)

I've tried their thermal spray before and loooved it. I can only imagine the rest of their products have the same quality. They're a bit too pricey for me though. haha I would definitely try these if I ever got some though!

ah isn't the thermal water spray great??!i use it as toner in the morning and soothing solution after epilating. it calms like magic.i still think canadian price is better than the u.s. price, but i'd give you the french website link if you're interested. :)

Excellent review Lena! Bottom line, we just want something that works. I've been so disappointed in the past with some higher end products. Thanks for telling us about this.http://www.averysweetblog.com/

[REPLY] Thank you dear, and the same to you! :)Good job! I didn´t manage to leave the store empty-handed:( :P

I haven´t used any anti-aging products yet, but I have to say I LOVE Avenes Cold Cream for dry hands.. As I´m a hairdresser my hands get soo dry all the time. But I´m using the cold cream with cotton gloves during the night and my hands are as soft as heaven the day after:)